{"entity":{"id":"haemoptysis","kind":"term","name":"Haemoptysis (coughing up blood)","aka":["coughing up blood","hemoptysis","blood in sputum","blood-streaked sputum","coughed up blood"],"tldr":"Coughing up blood, or blood-streaked phlegm. It has many causes other than cancer, including chest infection, but it is the one lung symptom that sends a person aged 40 or over straight onto the suspected cancer pathway rather than to an X-ray first.","summary":"NICE NG12 treats unexplained haemoptysis differently from every other respiratory symptom. Where cough, breathlessness, chest pain, fatigue, weight loss and appetite loss need two symptoms, or one plus a smoking history, to trigger an urgent chest X-ray in a person aged 40 or over, unexplained haemoptysis at 40 and over is itself a reason for a suspected cancer pathway referral, alongside chest X-ray findings that suggest lung cancer (recommendation 1.1.1). The NHS tells patients the same thing in plainer words: see a GP for a cough lasting more than three weeks, but ask for an urgent GP appointment or contact NHS 111 the same day if you cough up blood or see blood on a tissue. Most haemoptysis is not cancer: acute bronchitis, pneumonia, bronchiectasis, pulmonary embolism, tuberculosis and anticoagulation all cause it. Massive haemoptysis is a separate emergency. The reason for the low threshold is that haemoptysis is one of the few lung cancer symptoms specific enough to act on alone, while the rest are common in people who smoke and easy for both patient and doctor to explain away.","asOf":"2026-09-25","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hemoptysis","links":[{"label":"NICE NG12: suspected cancer, recommendations by site (lung and pleural cancers 1.1.1 to 1.1.6)","url":"https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng12/chapter/Recommendations-organised-by-site-of-cancer"},{"label":"NHS: symptoms of lung cancer (when to see a GP, when to call 111 and when to call 999)","url":"https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/lung-cancer/symptoms/"}],"tags":["lung"],"related":[],"cancers":["lung-cancer","nsclc","sclc"],"sections":[],"technologies":[],"targets":[],"drugs":[],"companies":[],"institutions":[],"pathways":[],"terms":["targeted-lung-health-check","bronchoscopy","emergency-presentation"],"trials":[],"people":[],"bottlenecks":[],"keyPapers":[],"journals":[],"dependsOn":[],"notes":[],"category":"Clinic basics"},"route":"/terms/haemoptysis/","neighbours":{"cancer":[{"id":"lung-cancer","kind":"cancer","name":"Lung cancer (all types)","route":"/cancers/lung-cancer/"},{"id":"nsclc","kind":"cancer","name":"Non-small-cell lung cancer","route":"/cancers/nsclc/"},{"id":"sclc","kind":"cancer","name":"Small-cell lung cancer","route":"/cancers/sclc/"},{"id":"lung-squamous-cell-carcinoma","kind":"cancer","name":"Squamous cell carcinoma of the lung","route":"/cancers/lung-squamous-cell-carcinoma/"}],"term":[{"id":"bronchoscopy","kind":"term","name":"Bronchoscopy (EBUS, robotic navigation)","route":"/terms/bronchoscopy/"},{"id":"emergency-presentation","kind":"term","name":"Emergency presentation (route to diagnosis)","route":"/terms/emergency-presentation/"},{"id":"pancoast-tumour","kind":"term","name":"Pancoast (superior sulcus) tumour","route":"/terms/pancoast-tumour/"},{"id":"targeted-lung-health-check","kind":"term","name":"Targeted lung health check","route":"/terms/targeted-lung-health-check/"}]}}